It's
an Honor

When you
are walking in Oakland, you will find yourself bumping into many tributes
to people who have earned the admiration of others. Enough admiration
that they commissioned statue, carved a stone, cast bronze plaques, built
walls and whole buildings. Who have you seen honored in Oakland?

Who deserves honor?

Who
are each of these tributes dedicated to? Why? What did each person or
people do to earn this honor?

Who
do you think commissioned these tributes? Why might they have chosen
the kind of memorial they did? Why do you think they located their monument
in Oakland?

What should a memorial do? What should artists keep in mind when they design a monument or building
honoring someone? What makes a good monument or memorial?

1934
postcard of Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall on Fifth Avenue.
What soldiers and sailors was this monument built to honor? (Collection
of Susan Donley)

Famous
Pittsburghers have been honored after their deaths: Stephen Foster (top, in front of the Carnegie Music Hall and the Cathedral of Learning)
and George Westinghouse (bottom, in Schenley Park).

Non-Pittsburghers
have also been honored in our parks: Robert Burns and Christopher
Columbus have found their way to Phipps Conservatory. What might be
the stories behind these unusal associations?

Galileo and Bach sit at the entrances of the Carnegie Museum of Natural
History and the Carnegie Music Hall. How purposeful was the artists' and
architects' choice of eye level?

Industrialists
who made their fortunes in Pittsburgh gave back educational buildings
so they would be remembered in the future: Mellon Institute and
Pitt's Frick Fine Arts Building. How are these honors different
than the honors to Pittsburghers above?

Not
all tributese are to the rich or famous? Part of Forbes Field's
right field wall, a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the U.S.
flag, and a memorial plaque in honor of two "adopted" Pittsburghers
can also be found in Schenley Park.

Photos:
Tom Altany

Who will you honor?

Find
out what it takes to create a memorial in Schenley Park or some other
public place in our area.

Who
would you nominate to be memorialized there? How would you like to remember
someone?

Design
a memorial and write a proposal for why this person deserves this honor.

Assign
a selection committee to judge memorials and present three to the class
to vote on. If you feel strongly enough, you might take your honor further
and try to actually nominate the memorial, raise funds, and build it!